Justification:Acanthurus dussumieri is widespread throughout the Indo-Pacific. It is uncommon in some parts of its range. Although heavily fished in some areas (e.g., Hawaii), there is no evidence of global population declines. It has a wide habitat range and is found in inter-reefal depths down to 131 m, thus provided with refuge. Its distribution encompasses a number of marine protected areas. Given this species' wide distributional and habitat range and occurrence in marine reserves, it is therefore listed as Least Concern.

Acanthurus dussumieri is found from the eastern coast of Africa to the southern Arabian Peninsula, northwards to southern Japan, southwards to New South Wales, Australia, and eastwards to New Caledonia, Guam and Hawaii. This species is not recorded from eastern Micronesia or most parts of the Central Pacific (R. Myers pers. comm. 2010).

Acanthurus dussumieri was recorded as occasional in terms of relative abundance in Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea (Allen 2003). It is uncommon from survey data in Guam and rare in the Guam and Saipan fishery (DAWR and P. Houk unpub. data). This species makes up 35% of acanthurid fishery in Hawaii at 11,200 kg in 2007. Catch has declined from 16,000 kg in 1997 but there is no corresponding effort data (DAR unpub. data). This species is collected as an aquarium fish in West Hawaii. The total number of individuals caught from FY 2005-2009 was 2,363 with a total value of $3,753 (Walsh et al. 2010). A. dussumieri is uncommon to rare in the Philippines (R. Abesamis, B. Stockwell and C. Nanola pers. comm. 2010).

In Kenya, landings during 1978-1982 for families that are less important in commercial catches (e.g., scarinae and Acanthuridae) showed rising catches (1978-1984) followed by a general decline during the 1990s, but the landings for the scarinae showed a rising trend in recent years (Kaunda-Arara et al. 2003).

Acanthurus dussumieri is generally found on seaward reefs, usually at depths greater than 10 m. Submarine observations in Hawaii to 131 m (Chave and Mundy 1994). It is usually seen as a solitary fish but may also occur in small groups. It feeds on detritus and sediment (Choat et al. 2004). It is classified as a grazer/detritivore (Choat and Bellwood pers. obs. in Green and Bellwood 2009).

The sexes are separate among the acanthurids (Reeson 1983). Acanthurids do not display obvious sexual dimorphism, males assume courtship colours (J.H. Choat pers. comm. 2010). It is reported as a pair spawner (Randall 2001b). Maximum age recorded from the Great Barrier Reef is at 28 years (Choat and Robertson 2002).

Acanthurus dussumieri is caught incidentally in many localities. It is one of the most commonly consumed species on Brooker Is., Papua New Guinea (Allen et al. 2003). It is taken mainly by traps. This species is the most landed Acanthurid species in the Hawaii commercial fishery (DAR unpub. data). It is occasionally seen in markets. It is also a component of the aquarium trade. Online prices range from $79.99-$799.95 based on size (L. Rocha pers. comm. 2010).

Acanthurus dussumieri is a targeted food fish in parts of its range. It is the most landed Acanthurid species in the Hawaii commercial fishery. In parts of its distribution (e.g., Coral Triangle), it is harvested in areas with known occurrence of illegal fishing practices.

Surgeonfishes show varying degrees of habitat preference and utilization of coral reef habitats, with some species spending the majority of their life stages on coral reef while others primarily utilize seagrass beds, mangroves, algal beds, and /or rocky reefs. The majority of surgeonfishes are exclusively found on coral reef habitat, and of these, approximately 80% are experiencing a greater than 30% loss of coral reef area and degradation of coral reef habitat quality across their distributions. However, more research is needed to understand the long-term effects of coral reef habitat loss and degradation on these species' populations. Widespread coral reef loss and declining habitat conditions are particularly worrying for species that recruit into areas with live coral cover, especially as studies have shown that protection of pristine habitats facilitate the persistence of adult populations in species that have spatially separated adult and juvenile habitats (Comeros-Raynal et al. 2012).

There are no species-specific conservation measures in place for this species. Its distribution overlaps several marine protected areas in parts of its range. In Queensland, Australia, there is a recreational catch limit of five per species and a minimum size limit of 25 cm (Department of Primary Industries accessed 8 April 2010).